A Multimedia Course in Recent American Cultural History

Abstract

READERS of The History Teacher are aware of the creative potential of multimedia for enriching college level history courses. I would like to share my experiences and frustrations in working up a multimedia course in recent American cultural and intellectual history. The central theme of the course is American civilization in the machine age, 1920-1945. In it I have attempted to integrate multiple media so as to enable the students to gain a multidimensional perspective on American society and culture in general and the machine culture in particular.' The course developed from two discontents I have felt keenly since the early 1970's. One was the usual pedagogical approach to history courses at large public institutions, a more or less passive situation in which the students were exposed to lectures and essay examinations. It gradually dawned on me that, however good or bad a classroom performer a teacher might be, this approach was not a particularly effective one for giving students the opportunity to work out historical